Dutch discount chain Action has had enormous success since its acquisition by investment firm 3i. It was the group’s best-performing company once more last year and sets its targets at a 10 billion euro turnover.
Value grown more than 1000 %
Action’s 2016 turnover reached 2.7 billion euro, a 34 % turnover increase. The forecast for 2017 is to reach more than 3.5 billion euro, mainly thanks to new store openings. It opened 197 new stores last year and has already crossed the 1,000 store milestone.
It also achieved a 6 to 7 % like-for-like turnover increase and generated a 310 million euro profit. Back in 2011, when 3i acquired the chain, it only had a 86 million euro profit. Its value has grown to 1.7 billion pounds (1.9 billion euro), compared to a mere 131 million pounds (146.7 million euro) in 2011.
Rapid expansion
Action’s parent company has no intention to halt its growth and wants to create a company with a 10 billion euro turnover. That will require a lot of new stores in the next few years and it will already open several hundred new stores this year alone. It is also looking at expansion to Spain, Switzerland, Czechia, Italy, Poland or Denmark.
Action has the same store formula in every country and also presents a similar product range. The owners also claim every store is profitable and that the investments are retrieved within a year. It has no current plans for a web shop however.
